Ryu was absolutely furious.
Even if he could understand Sarriel's perspective, he refused to accept it.
It sounded logical. And, if he was honest with himself, it was logical. It only made sense to lower your head in the face of the strong, to rein in your arrogance when you had yet to accomplish as much as the person across from you, to humble yourself before insurmountable odds.
He understood it all, he had always understood it.
He understood that truth as a child in his second life facing the monstrous behemoth of the Tor Clan. He understood it when he was nearly killed by Fidroha during his first encounter with the Martial Apostles. He understood it when he met City Lord Loom and he was almost forced to kneel before thousands of people.
He understood it when he faced the geniuses of the Core Region with his Spiritual Foundation ripped out from him. He understood it when he was hunted down by the Clans of the Inner Ring. He understood it when he faced the wrath of Patriarch Ember.
He understood it when Zulfiqar tore a whole through his heart with a single strike. He understood it when he faced a banquet of Martial God geniuses. He understood it when a Knight of Heaven stared down from a meter taller than his own gaze, threatening to reap his life with a single fist.
HE HAD ALWAYS UNDERSTOOD IT!
He just didn't give a damn.
He would rather die than lower his head. As he had said to Patriarch Ember before reaping his life in exchange for his arrogance so many years ago, if he had the latter's pitiful talent, he would have died long ago.
No one would force him to lower his head. No one.
As for his wives, his mother, his father… For their sake, he wouldn't lower his head even to death itself!
Ryu's will blazed to life like a fiery golden flame, his fury piercing through the veil of reality. To take him away from his family before he could slay all of their enemies was something he would never allow.
If he died on his path to the pinnacle, he would do so with a smile. But, if he died before he could secure the future for his family, that he would never accept.
Ryu's mind roared, an intangible sort of will squeezing the broken pieces of his soul and stopping them from dissipating any more than they already had.
If others could see this scene, they would realize that this so-called 'intangible' will was the strings of Fate itself.
Ryu bent and warped them, using the last dregs of power his Heaven's Gate transformation had given him to twist Fate just one more time.
While it wasn't enough to save Ryu's life, it was enough to halt his death process. Ryu's body was always something that could be reconstructed, so long as his soul was intact. Not to mention the fact considering how robust his body was, even with such a heavy injury, he wouldn't have to worry about needing to reconstruct it for countless millions of years regardless.
Ryu's consciousness slowly gained a small bit of clarity, his connection with his body reforming akin to a thin line of qi that seemed like it might snap at any moment.
But, Ryu hardly cared for this. If it snapped, he would reform it. If it snapped again, he would reform it again. He wouldn't allow anything to stop him.
His fury reached another level when he realized that his Bloodlines had gone dormant once again. Just like they had in the face of the Heavens, they retreated in the face of Death.
'You pathetic dregs… Awaken!'
Ryu's rage lit his Fire Dragon Bloodline like a spark.
With a thought, he pushed it toward the odd Phoenix fusion Bloodline that now ran through his veins, poking at it and provoking it until it too awakened from its slumber. At the same time, his Lightning Qilin Bloodline also shot awake, provoked by the awakening of Ryu's Fire Dragon Bloodline.
Ryu threw his Dragon and Qilin Bloodlines to the side, shooting his mind into his Phoenix Bloodline.
He dug through it like a madman, swatting awakened memories to the side one after another. The Lines of Fate followed his every movement, his mind roaring louder and louder with every passing moment.
In the real world, the roar suddenly pierced the veil, causing Himari to freeze even as her face began to form faint wrinkles. She had already gathered most of vitality, fully prepared to give it all to her son. But, when she heard this roar, even though it caused her own ears to leak with blood, she couldn't help but be happier than she had maybe ever been.
The clouds above split. Like a reversed waterfall, the dark cumulonimbus clouds rushed upward as though gravity had reversed.
Within Ryu's body, his Lines of Fate trembled, threatening to snap again, but his mind released another roar, snapping them back into place.
There it was. There it was, hidden in the deepest foundations of his fused Phoenix Bloodline.
Its aura was far different from what it had originally been, but Ryu still recognized it. It had definitely undergone some sort of mutation after his two Phoenix Bloodlines fused with what must have been Dark Phoenix Blood Essence. But, he still recognized it.
Rebirth.
'Give it to me now!'
Ryu poured his Lines of Fate forward, whipping them at the shackles that threatened to keep his Rebirth Talent under lock and key.
His assault was relentless and furious, his aura growing into a taller and taller towering pillar with every passing moment.
"OPEN!"
The whips of Fate shattered the last piece and the world seemed to release a sigh of defeat.
In that moment, a swirling tower of white flames shattered Ryu's coffin, swallowing up his Death Flame, Ice Flame and his Rebirth Flame.
It flashed with black, blue and red, even tinges of gold and violet, but it eventually assimilated it all, swallowing it whole.
Ryu's body shot into the skies being wreathed in these flames until his flesh, bones and even soul were all burnt to ash.